GMD Statement: The Society We Choose to Build

At Global Mindset Development (GMD), we believe that the measures concerning third-country nationals outlined in Malta’s Budget 2027 need to be considered at four levels: legal, economic, moral, and cultural.

We leave the assessment of their legality to legal experts and the competent national and European institutions, and their economic implications to those equipped to evaluate their costs, benefits and long-term sustainability.

Our contribution concerns the third and fourth levels: what these measures communicate about who belongs, how we treat one another, and the society we are building together.

As an organisation working in intercultural communication, inclusion and dialogue, we are extremely concerned about the polarisation that measures of this kind risk deepening. When a particular group is singled out to carry additional burdens, the message extends beyond the measures themselves. It risks reinforcing an “us versus them” narrative, in which some people are seen as less deserving of respect, support and belonging.

The people affected are our colleagues, neighbours, friends, parents and children. Labeling them, or reducing them to categories, costs or problems obscures their humanity. Our concern is that this framing can legitimise prejudice, fuel online hate and make dehumanising language increasingly acceptable in everyday life.

Public policy shapes more than access to services. It also shapes attitudes: whose difficulties deserve empathy, whose contributions are recognised, and whose exclusion becomes acceptable.

A country cannot build a bright future on division, resentment and the normalisation of scapegoating.

Even if every person told to “go back to their country” were to leave tomorrow, the habit of blaming an entire group for complex social problems would remain. Housing pressures, strained services and other challenges require serious answers. Blaming “outsiders” encourages us to look for someone to hold responsible instead of examining the decisions, structures and shared responsibilities behind those challenges.

Once that mentality takes root, it does not disappear when its current target leaves. It finds another target. The damage reaches the whole of society, weakening trust, solidarity and our ability to address problems together. These polarising thoughts should not be taught, or endorsed as an acceptable way of living in society.

Rather, there must be an alternative to the bifurcation of ‘us’ and ‘them’. This alternative cannot be sought solely in the inventory of benefits or burdens that the newcomer brings to the host territory. It must be crafted according to the lived features of the persona — what is experienced before, during, and after the stay. In other words, we must consider the geographical and temporal space in which the persona is allowed to become through experience, rather than through superficial labels imposed by standardized homologation. We believe that Malta has the power of rendering this manifestation possible.

We recognise that governments must make difficult decisions about migration, public resources and the future. Those decisions must be accompanied by responsible leadership and language that protects human dignity and encourages mutual understanding.

At GMD, we want to help build a society where concerns can be discussed openly, differences approached with curiosity and respect, and challenges addressed without turning people against one another.

We are concerned about the unfair distinction and application of these measures. All of we contribute to building a society equally, and as such, everyone should be evenly and equally treated and recognised.

A society that seeks easy scapegoats is not the society we want to see or help build. Our commitment is to a Malta where dignity, fairness and belonging guide both public policy and everyday relationships.

Let’s turn these concerns into connection.

This December, to mark International Migrants Day, we invite you to join GMD for an intercultural walk against polarisation on 11 December: an opportunity to meet, listen, share stories and recognise one another beyond labels. We also encourage you to join the Green Ribbon Campaign in Malta as a visible gesture of solidarity.

We can also start today, through simple everyday gestures. Be kind to the people around you, especially third-country nationals who may be feeling increasingly unwelcome. Start a conversation, check in on a colleague or neighbour, challenge a dehumanising comment, and think before sharing content that fuels division.

Walk with us.

Be gentle with one another.

Help build a Malta where everyone is treated with dignity.